A group of white supremacists was planning to attack the U.S. power grid, according to a federal affidavit that was mistakenly unsealed. An Ohio teenager appears to be the ringleader of the group and started communicating with them in 2019 when he was 17-years-old.
According to the documents, the teen wanted the group to be "operational" by 2024 but told members to be ready in 2020 if President Donald Trump lost his re-election bid. The documents identify three individuals by name and said they communicated using encrypted messaging software before finally meeting up in person.
The teen suggested buying a ranch so members could participate in military-style training and wanted to create militant cells with Nazi-like beliefs all over the country. The group had a uniform and shared white supremacist reading materials with each other. The members were even willing to die for their cause.
"I can say with absolute certainty that I will die for this effort. I swear it on my life," one man told the teen. He replied: "I can say the same."
The teen reportedly suggested attacking the U.S. power grid next summer, telling a few members he wanted to shoot power substations in the southeastern United States.
"Leaving the power off would wake people up to the harsh reality of life by wreaking havoc across the nation," one of the members said in a message to an FBI informant.
No charges have been publicly filed in the case as the FBI continues to investigate the group.
Photo: Getty Images